Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1887-08-13
LEARNING 70 SWIM.

Guthris in the Chicago inter. Ocean

GSEAHNHNtS ~ I'VE
The Mistakes Wade by Bcxinuers.
o Guthrie in the Chicago inter Ocean.
Hardly a day passes without the recording OF
cases Of drowning under painful circumstances
In many cases there was no injury sustained by
any OF the persons lost TO prevent their swimming
ana had they possessed any knowledge OF the art
these fatal accidents would only have bsen laugh
able incidents, ana created merriment for all con-
concerned. Learning to swim requires intellectual
as well physical effort; the former is rarely
used and the consequence Is that 1t sometimes
takes months, and often years, to learn.
The great trouble In learning is the nervous
ness that every one feels at first about getting
the head under water, and all efforts are used
to keep the head out. The experience Of the
writer In teaching boys to swim has convinced
him that thi5 IS wrong. good swimmer should
be able TO swim under water as well as at the
surface, and the first step in learning should be
TO get accustomed to having the head under
water. The learner should first have all fear
taken away, and then the rest Is easy. The
10 swim. aud in many cases they have learned
at the very frst time trying His method is as
water IL it can be found, about waist-deep SO
that ne knows that he can recover his footing at
any time he Chooses. The frst effort should be
10 hold the breath, and submerge the face, keep
Ing the eyes open; or, better still, IL he can do
IL at hr5t, submerge the whole head. THIS
should be practlced until no difficulty. is expert
enced in Keeping the eyes open and excluding
the water from the mouth and nose and until
All 90 n Is gone There need be no fear OF
should select an object say fifteen feet away,
plunge boldly under the water and make the best
OF his Way 10 IL by swimming under water with
his eyes open and fixed upon the point selected
In almost all Cases, his mind being relieved from
fear, ne wiifinstinctively adopt the methods cal
culated to accomplish the end desired, whtie on
the other hand, nervous effort to keep the head
out OF the water fixes the mind upon that alone,
ana The effort Is made in that direction rather than
In learning To swim.
Some instruction in making the stroke, however,
should be given. The finger ends should be
Drought together at the breast, with the thumbs
sue by side between the palms of the hands and
lever with their upper edge; with the hands in
thlo position the arms should be extended TO their
Iu,i ienSIh when the backs OF the hands should be
rolled inward, bringing the thumbs down, until
the oacks form the letter v, the thumbs being
odck To back, and the edges OF the iOref1ngers
touchlng- The learner Is now in position for
making the most important movement In learn
Ing TO SWIM and this is made by sweeping "
tended the arms and 'tllSning' hands rapidly
around until they touch the sides, when they
should be again brought To the breast ready for
another stroke. There are lew readers who have
not seen the movement oil the frog in the water,
anu the aim should be 10 Initiate 1t in the move
ment or the legs. Ia the recovering stroke the
movement should be slow, that OF Jhe propeil1ng
stroke rapid by comparison.
only about two and One-han pounds of lifting
force In addition TO the buoyancy OF the body are
required TO hold the head entirely out OF the
water.
The writer once witnessed a feat performed by q
mere boy which was little short OF sublime About
the year 1850 man whose name Was Pe.,se was a
passenger on packet boat in tow OF the tug KOS
sulA; IN tow OF the packet was u canoe, In wuich
were two lads aoas Of Mr.. Pease, thirteen, the
other ten years OF age. In rounding the bend at
iwellth street tue canoe Was capszed and broke
loose from the Packet. The older boy swan to his
brother, placed him astride the canoe, and then
swan ashore through the sweiis made by the
wheel OF the Tug. amid the deaiening applause of
the passengers on the packet. The writer regrets
That he cannot give the first name or the young
nero There IS not probably one of the young
al R,,SA ay tht,
lining II properly taugut, ana he hopes that If any
or them have not learned! TO swim they will not
let another week pass without being able TO do So
SwinDurne on Walt Whitman.
THE POET OF PASSION MAKES SOME CRITICISMS ON
The CAMDEN BARD.
From the Pail Mall Gazette
MIR. Swinburne calls mis- article In Fortnigh IN
'Whitmania' He does not, he explains take
back anything he has formerly said on the thrill
Ing and fiery 1orce' of Whitmans .gusty rhetorc c."
nor does he deny that Whitman has said wise
ana nODle things upon such simple and eternal
subjects as HE and death, pity and enmity friend
snip ana n9htlng. What ne protests a. dnsL Is
" hitnanid' the attempt TO give Whitman q
nigh place among the poets; and what he seeks 20
do Is. in the name OF 'conmOa-senSe and sound
sra TO 1s sue htaanaes Into their
TO make good claim TO the titIe OF '.poet'
man must hr S"inbGrne points out, either be
claim on the former score. VII. SwinDurne answers
''Iu eS poetic CONNIE InonsuuIier." Whitman Is
absolutely deficient IN 'sinetre RHYTHM Cadence"
bis Ver-eS are almost as bad as those ut which Mr..
Carlyle was good enough to try his hand" OF
thooe which have Deem allowed TO pass Muster"
for poetry under ByronS name. Whitman is an
'orOtund oratiSt;' he is not d singer And neither
ADDS Mr.. SWfnDurne Is ".Iaker." on IuiS
sore he Ranks WITH NJ. Martin Upper They can
not even evoke shadows. like Nj. JIInes Macpher-
sou; they can only "iccusnulate words" "As to mis-
Originality In the II liter Tree speaking, IL need
Oniy De Observed says Nj. Swtnburne, 'Jhat no
renlarhaO.e mental gait Is relUisIte 10 qualify
ma IN Or woman for IneinDAr5h Oh sect )ntiOned
oy DE- J0hneon-the Adliuite>, who believed in
Inc yirsue Oh pubic nu lily" WdltIn IN ana lola
c.dlm the priv eye Of 81. Peter TO call nOtuing
common OF uncsedn. But in poetry, bove al OF ier
arts, the method Of tredL:eat Is every iiin. and
Whitman ; l:le' bod Is m4rhcd neither 10y Sappho's
dying nu6llini;y III IasCiuatiUn.' nor Itiln's
traaScendent supremacy OF actualan irresistible
beauty ia the contrary, s,r \, humans Eve Is
II drunken apple-n oman inherently sprIWiln,
In the sidah and garbage OF tine gutter amid rotten
refuse OF hef overturned irut-5taIi,+ and ais Venus
Is "a Hottentot wench under me influence or can
tnaIldeS and sduiLer.Itt'i 81 -"
Ex-senator Tak0f7s Divorced Wife.